


choose you twice

by ShirosRedKnight (SweetFanfics)



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Alternate Universe, M/M, Magical Tattoos, hance in the way background, witch shiro
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-10-22
Updated: 2017-10-22
Packaged: 2019-01-21 13:28:34
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,336
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12458757
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SweetFanfics/pseuds/ShirosRedKnight
Summary: It’s a regular, normal lunch date - similar to countless others they’ve shared. Meanwhile, Shiro’s tattoo’s continue to frolic on the man’s pale skin. In fact, they’re evenmoreactive than when Keith had shown up. The leaves on the vines that twine through the sleeve are swaying. The wolf and panther have migrated a few inches down to playfully tussle with a tiger. In the space of fifteen minutes, the rose bud etched in the middle of Shiro’s forearm has bloomed into a magnificent rose.--A regular lunch date turns into something more for Shiro and Keith.





	choose you twice

**Author's Note:**

> When [Chelsea tweeted this idea](https://twitter.com/staarkasms/status/920137241300799488) I had this super vague idea in my head like "omg I could write this scene" but that initial scene changed like, four times and I didn't even know where I wanted to start this so basically what I'm saying is, all of this was written purely by the seat of my pants and was TOTALLY unplanned.
> 
> Unbeataed like usual lol

Keith loves seeing Shiro in his element. It’s why he often shows up ten minutes before Shiro’s lunch break starts. As he steps into the magic shop, Keith waves at his boyfriend and heads to the windowside table, their usual table, and starts cleaning the clutter up. 

 

Shiro’s been the manager of  _ Altean Magics  _ for close to a year now. He manages a team of four, including the owner, Allura. Together, the team creates different potions, poultices, charms, amulets, and other magical items for their clientele. They all specialize in different types of magic. Pidge is a whiz at runes, Lance and Allura are water elementals, and Hunk has a unique talent for all things earth-grown. Shiro works directly with special clients, brewing potions and spells to help solve their unique problems.

 

Keith used to work at this magic shop until very recently. He’d been offered a job at another shop across town with one of his mom’s old acquaintances. Loathe as he’d been to leave his friends, Keith had accepted the job because it paid well. Significantly more than what he earned at  _ Altean Magics _ .

 

Right now, Shiro’s standing in front of the counter with a customer, helping them go over the list of instructions that comes with their six bottle set of potions. Keith pauses, hands full of pink quartz stones, stares at the orange light pulsing in the heart of each bottle and wonders what the potions are for. 

 

As the customer asks their questions, Hunk rings up two teenagers purchases and cheerfully tells them to have a nice day. He follows them to the door, flipping the “We’re Open!” sign to the “Sorry, We’re Closed” side before walking up to Keith.

 

“Hey Keith, sorry about the mess,” Hunk apologizes as he takes the crystals away from Keith and turns to return them to their rightful place. “We had a tricky client today. We all had to come out here and make her stuff together.” 

 

Keith eyes the mess of crystals, balled up papers with scratched out runes on them, a large purple stain on the wood, and stack of dirty instruments before turning back to Hunk with a raised eyebrow. “What did she need?”

 

By the time Hunk is done explaining, the table is clean and Shiro’s heading towards them with a smile. He slips an arm around Keith’s waist and kisses his cheek, “Hey. Sorry you had to wait. Had to explain to Carl how to use his potions.”

 

Shiro slips around Keith to stand next to the lunch bag. Keith watches in amusement as his boyfriend eagerly opens the bag, making pleased noises when he sees the stir fry in the first box before eagerly pulling out the second container. The hedgehog tattooed close to his wrist curiously walks up Shiro’s wrist bone, nose turned towards the packed lunch. 

 

“What’d he need them for?”  

 

“He’s got a haunted tea set.” Shiro cracks a tupperware container open and lets out an appreciative moan as the smell of freshly cooked fried rice floats up his nostrils. Keith can’t help but preen internally at the sound.

 

Hunk interrupts with a sharp, “A haunted  _ what _ ?”

 

“Tea set,” Shiro answers with a laugh. “He inherited it recently and turns out, his great aunt is haunting it. He wanted me to figure out a way to help her peacefully pass on and leave the tea set alone.”

 

Shaking his head as he puts their reference books in the bookshelf, Hunk mutters, “Every time I think I’ve heard of the weirdest thing, something like this happens. Haunted tea set. That’s ridiculous. Oh.” He stops as a digital chime sound rings, dipping his hand into his pants pocket to pull his phone out. “That’s Lance. I’ll see you after lunch Shiro!”

 

Keith waves at Hunk, asking Shiro, “He’s got a lunch date?”

 

“Yeah. Him and Lance are going to try out the new Thai place that opened up a couple of blocks down.” 

 

Nodding, Keith takes his seat as Shiro puts a clean plate and fork down in front of him. “And Pidge?”

 

“She’s out on a client call. She said she’d swing by Matt’s for lunch before coming back.” Shiro shoots him a warm grin before sitting down next to him, warm hand dropping on top of Keith’s on the table. “It’s just us today.”

 

The touch sparks a warmth deep inside his belly, similar to feeling of taking the first sip of hot coffee on a chilly day. Keith smiles, lips going higher when he sees the color of Shiro’s tattoo’s grow vibrant with happiness. 

 

Near the top of the sleeve, the wolf silhouette stretches in a long line around Shiro’s bicep before neatly sitting back on its hindquarters. It rubs a paw against its snout before turning to the panther slumbering by its side. As the wolf noses against the panther’s face, Keith asks, “Your tattoo’s are pretty active today.”

 

Shiro glances down at his left arm, grinning a little as he catches the panther tattoo bump heads with the wolf. “It’s been a good day so far. You remember Mrs. Holly?”

 

“She wanted you to cleanse her house?”

 

“Yeah. She came by today and said she hasn’t had any trouble for a month now.”

 

Keith nods in understanding. Shiro loves hearing back from their clients, especially when they tell him that they’ve been a big help. It’s the best way to cheer the man up. And when he’s happy, not only do his tattoos turn more vibrant in their hue, they also become more active. And today, the surplus magic and spells that Shiro’s stored as tattoos on his left arm are all active in different ways. 

 

As Shiro plates up the food, happily chattering about other clients who have come in today, Keith stares at Shiro’s tattoos. He tries to remember the last time he’s seen Shiro’s tattoo’s looking so colorful or so  _ active _ . Shiro’s in an exceptionally good mood today. Keith fleetingly wonders as to the cause of this good mood but is quickly distracted when Shiro asks, “You’ve got a late shift tonight, right?”

 

Keith nods, accepting his plate back. “Yeah. I start at four. I’ll be closing with Kolivan tonight. You don’t have to worry about dinner either. I made enough of this for tonight.” He gestures at the food with his fork.

 

Groaning at the first bite, Shiro chews, swallows, and sighs in appreciation. “Thanks.” There’s something about the smile he directs at Keith that makes the latter drop his gaze, flustered. “I don’t know what I’d do without you.”

 

As he spears a piece of chicken, Keith mutters, “Probably fifteen pounds lighter because you’d keep forgetting to eat on time.” 

 

Shiro’s laugh is an amused huff that pulls Keith’s lips up into a smile. “That or living of Subway salads.”

 

The rest of lunch passes peacefully. In between their conversation, Shiro tries to stealthily sneak a small pile of green beans onto Keith’s plate but every time Keith blocks him with a well placed strike with his fork. When all his attempts have failed and earned him a stern look, Shiro sighs and eats the vegetables, making faces along the way.

 

It’s a regular, normal lunch date - similar to countless others they’ve shared. Meanwhile, Shiro’s tattoo’s continue to frolic on the man’s pale skin. In fact, they’re even  _ more  _ active than when Keith had shown up. The leaves on the vines that twine through the sleeve are swaying. The wolf and panther have migrated a few inches down to playfully tussle with a tiger. In the space of fifteen minutes, the rose bud etched in the middle of Shiro’s forearm has bloomed into a magnificent rose.

 

Keith’s staring so intently at the rose, lost in his thoughts, that he misses Shiro calling his name. It’s only when he feels metal fingers touching his wrist that Keith realizes he’d drifted away. “Sorry,” Keith apologizes, sliding his empty plate towards Shiro. 

 

Shiro accepts and holds onto the plate. He tilts his head and asks, “What’s up? You seem distracted.”

 

_ Oops _ , Keith winces. He doesn’t know how to tell Shiro that he’s confused why Shiro’s in such good spirits. It’s just too rude. But at the same time, his eyes are drawn to the red rose fluttering slightly due to an unseen wind on Shiro’s skin. Shiro’s eyes follow his gaze, his bionic right hand rising up to wrap around his wrist. Under his gaze, Keith sees the tattoos vibrance fade and return to their static state.

 

Except for the wolf and panther. Their ink remains a deep jet black that no tattoo artist could ever hope to replicate. They run in circles around Shiro’s bicep, darting away when he tries to ‘catch’ them and lock them back into place. Keith smiles amusedly as the panther snarls at Shiro before hiding behind a thick set of vines.

 

“I don’t think they want you to stop them.” He looks up at Shiro’s exasperated expression and asks, “Are you okay?”

 

Blinking, Shiro stares at him for a moment before nodding, “Never better.”

 

Keith gestures at the other man’s tattoo sleeve for his answer. Shiro rubs his fuzzy undercut, an odd smile growing the longer the silence stretches between them. Finally, he gets to his feet with a cryptic, “I’ll be right back.”

 

As Shiro walks away, Keith can’t help but glance at the locked front door, wondering if maybe a customer has shown up. But Shiro isn’t heading towards the front door. He walks behind the counter into the back of the shop where Keith knows their individual workshops are. Keith pushes his chair back on its hind legs, trying to catch a glimpse of Shiro but he can’t see anything.

 

He gives up quickly, sighing as he finishes putting everything back into the lunch bag. As Keith is zipping the back up, Shiro steps back into the shop. He’s holding a box on his hands, one he places in front of Keith before sitting back down.

 

Keith eyes the wooden box before shooting Shiro a puzzled look. “Is this for me?”

 

“Yep.”

 

“But it’s not my birthday.”

 

Snorting into his bionic hand, Shiro teases, “I don’t need a reason to give my boyfriend a present.”

 

_ That’s true _ , Keith acquises before turning his attention back to the box. It’s made of wood, a little too big to be held in one hand. There’s a silver latch in front that Keith snaps open before pushing the lid back. 

 

A fat bird made of wispy-luminous white smoke spreads its wings and takes flight. Keith jerks back, gaping at the bird as it flies over his head, singing a song whose notes tease an old memory. 

 

“Hold your hand out,” Shiro quietly tells him and he silently obeys.

 

The magical bird perches on his index finger, unfelt except for the unique feeling Keith’s classified as Shiro’s magic. It’s a tingle, an awareness, a quick prick of electricity that makes him sit up straighter. The bird sings on, warbling a few notes that Keith finally recognizes. 

 

He laughs, breathless but delighted. “That’s our song.” 

 

Turning to look at Shiro, who is grinning at him, Keith asks, “Did you make this yourself? It’s beautiful.”

 

Shiro’s grin softens at the praise. As the bird finishes its song, Keith sees that Shiro’s tattoos are in an even greater state of agitation. The rose has bloomed again and is a vibrant shade of red that cannot be found in nature. Keith looks up at Shiro, who shoots the box a significant look. 

 

Puzzled, Keith follows the gaze and feels his breath hitch inside his lungs.

 

A plain gold band sits on top of a black cushion in the center of the box. Keith shoots Shiro a wide-eyed look, lips shaping half-formed questions that never come into being. With a short exhale, Keith looks back at the ring. 

 

“You said,” Shiro breaks the silence, voice softer than the bird alight on his wrist, “I should propose to you again once I got a ring.”

 

“Shiro,” Keith croaks, voice breaking when he sees Shiro take hold of the ring. His chair drags noisily against the floor as he stands up, making enough room for Shiro to smoothly drop to one knee next to Keith.

 

The magic bird hops up to Keith’s shoulder, chirping happily as Shiro takes his limp hand and gives it a warm squeeze. “Keith, will you marry me?”

 

Keith exhales slowly, trying to regulate his breathing so that his heartbeat will stop going crazy but it’s a lost cause. His heart pounds against his ribs so hard and fast Keith’s worried the orgasn will jump out of his chest. He stares into Shiro’s soft gray eyes and wonders if he’s dreaming. 

 

A blink and Keith realizes that all of Shiro’s tattoos are deathly still. For the first time since he’s known Shiro, his magical tattoos look like regular tattoos. Every inked design is frozen in place, colors blooming, seemingly holding their breath in anticipation of Keith’s answer. 

 

_ Oh _ , Keith realizes.  _ This explains everything. _

 

Inhaling shakily, Keith meets Shiro’s eyes and grins so hard his cheeks ache. “ _ Yes _ !”

 

Shiro’s gusty exhale brushes over his hand. “Thank God.” 

 

He slips the ring into place before rising up, both hands cupping Keith’s cheeks. Keith’s hands move in tandem, taking hold of Shiro’s face in preparation for a heated kiss that makes Keith’s toes curl inside his boots. It’s just lips meeting lips, a long, firm kiss with no tongue and disconnect. But it’s the best damn kiss Keith’s ever exchanged with Shiro. 

 

When they break apart, Shiro straightens to his full height and beams down at Keith. Helplessly in love, Keith tips forward to press his forehead against Shiro’s stomach and hugs his hips. “I love you so much. Thank you for the bird.”

 

Gentle hands pull him up to his feet and guide his face up into another kiss, more gentle than before. “Love you too. And you’re welcome,” Shiro whispers back.


End file.
